League One's top two chase Scunthorpe striker

The People newspaper is doing over-time with Leeds United rumours today. It started by claiming Robert Snodgrass is the target of a £500,000 Everton bid and has followed up by linking us and Charlton with Scunthorpe striker, Paul Hayes.

I’m happy to disregard the first rumour on the basis that £500,000 is a fee we can quite easily turn down for one of our key players. Snodgrass will be catching the attention of a few clubs after his Scotland call-up and display against Liverpool, but it seems an unlikely gamble for Everton.

However, the Paul Hayes link could have some truth to it. I’m not sure what the extent of Becchio’s injury is, but whether it’s a week or six months, it was clearly evident on Saturday we need some better options upfront.

Enoch Showunmi had an absolute mare of a game. His passes rarely reached their destination and his first touch was clumsy. Mike Grella is coming on leaps and bounds and an extended run in the first team might be just what he needs, but I think Grayson would be wise to give himself further options.

The 26-year-old forward isn’t the most prolific of goal-scorers. So far this season he’s scored 3 times in his 14 appearences which is about average to his overall record.

The Scunthorpe official site is quick to defend his unimpressive goal-scoring record though and adds that “[Paul is] more than just a goalscorer. Hayes drops back behind the striker and is one of the club’s main creative outlets”.

He sounds as though he could be a bit like Lucciano Becchio. Jermaine Beckford will always be on hand to turn the ball home, but Becchio is often a key part of the build-up and his lay-offs and passes create the chances that Beckford thrives on. If we are going to have injury problems with Lucciano, then Hayes could be ideal cover.